Mersey Bluff Lighthouse - Tasmania

Well, since we're still on the subject of lighthouses, I thought we'd take a trip to Australia and the island state of Tasmania.

Tasmania is located 150 miles south of continental Australia across the Bass Strait and is known as the "island of inspiration" due to its large and relatively unspoiled natural environment. The Great Australian Bight borders it in the west, The Tasman Sea in the east, and The Southern Ocean in the south. Hobart, the largest city and state capital is the south; we rented a sailing yacht there to cruise in The Southern Ocean. The most well-known resident is the Tasmanian Devil. After an 11-hour night crossing of the Bass Strait aboard the MS Abel Tasman, we arrived in Port Devonport on the north side of the island. Just outside of the port, we came upon the Mersey Bluff Lighthouse on the western side of the mouth of the Mersey River. It was constructed in 1889, replacing a succession of previous beacons. This lighthouse is considered unusual in Australia because of its distinctive verticle red striped daymark. Tasmania will be featured in future posts, we spent a month here.